Soda Ash Statistics and Information

Soda ash is the trade name for sodium carbonate, a chemical
refined from the mineral trona or sodium-carbonate-bearing
brines (both referred to as "natural soda ash") or manufactured
from one of several chemical processes (referred to as
"synthetic soda ash"). It is an essential raw material in glass,
chemicals, detergents, and other important industrial products.
In 1998, in terms of production, soda ash was the 11th largest
inorganic chemical of all domestic inorganic and organic
chemicals, excluding petrochemical feedstocks. Although soda
ash represented only 2% of the total $39 billion U.S. nonfuel
mineral industry, its use in many diversified products
contributed substantially to the gross domestic product of the
United States. Because soda ash is used in flat glass for automobile
manufacture and building construction, which are important
economic sectors of the domestic economy, monthly soda ash
production data are incorporated into monthly economic
indicators for industrial production by the Federal Reserve
Board, which monitors the condition of the U.S. economy.